UCLA athletic director confirms Chip Kelly's $1.5 million buyout will be enforced

Former UCLA head coach Chip Kelly was clearly looking for a way out of Los Angeles this offseason. As he interviewed with several different NFL teams and was mentioned for a variety of jobs, many wondered where exactly he’d end up.

Well, on Friday, we got our answer, as Kelly decided to take the offensive coordinator position with the Ohio State Buckeyes. UCLA Athletic Director Martin Jarmond plans to not give Kelly any discounts on his way out the door.

According to James H. Williams of the OC Register, Jarmond confirmed on Friday that Kelly’s $1.5 million buyout will be enforced. That comes as no surprise, since the Bruins posted a deficit of $36.6 million for the 2023 fiscal year, according a report from the Los Angeles Times.

UCLA AD Martin Jarmond releases statement on Chip Kelly

On Friday, Chip Kelly’s time with the UCLA Bruins came to an end in a way that almost nobody ever would’ve predicted.

Kelly decided to move on from being the Bruins leader to join Ryan Day at Ohio State, accepting their offensive coordinator position. It was the latest in a chain-reaction that began with Jeff Hafley leaving Boston College for the Green Bay Packers, and Bill O’Brien replacing Hafley after being hired by the Buckeyes.

As UCLA processes the news, UCLA’s Alice and Nahum Lainer Family Director of Athletics Martin Jarmond released a statement on the matter, thanking Kelly for his time with the Bruins.

“I want to sincerely thank Chip for his service to UCLA Football and our student-athletes across the past six seasons and wish the best to him and his wife Jill moving forward,” said Jarmond, via a press release.

Additionally, Jarmond relayed a call-to-action for the future of the program, explaining that he’s confident the Bruins will find a worthwhile replacement for Kelly.

“It is imperative that we support our student-athletes and put them in the best position to succeed,” added Jarmond. “UCLA is a special place, and we are confident we will find a leader for our football program who develops young men on and off the field and embodies our True Bruin Values.”

Alas, it remains to be seen what direction UCLA goes in, but Friday’s news would’ve been unheard of just a couple of years ago. It’s going to be fascinating to see who they hire, and where the Bruins go from here ahead of their move to the Big Ten.

More on his departure for the Ohio State Buckeyes

Moreover, Chip Kelly spent the past six seasons at UCLA and was successful his last three years there. The Bruins went 8-4, 9-4 and 8-5 to close out Kelly’s time in LA. The 60-year-old has a background in offense and helped produce some of the most explosive offenses in college football history.

Kelly got his first opportunity at the Power 5 level in 2007 when he was hired as the offensive coordinator at Oregon. During his two seasons as OC, the Ducks set school records for yards per game and points per game both years. Oregon averaged 41.9 points and 484.8 yards per game in 2008 under Kelly’s spread, up-tempo offense.

Chip Kelly was named the head coach at Oregon ahead of the 2009 season and had four outstanding years. The Ducks went 10-3, 12-1, 12-2 and 12-1 in his four seasons as head coach.

From there, Kelly tried his hand at the NFL. He was named the head coach of the Eagles ahead of the 2013 season and spent three years in Philadelphia. He was fired after going 6-9 in 2015 and then went to the 49ers, where his team struggled to a 2-14 record. 

Kelly spent 2017 working as an analyst at ESPN, before returning to the college ranks ahead of the 2018 season, taking over the UCLA program.

On3’s Steve Samra also contributed to this article.